Special thanks to Laura and Aurelio Mastrovito
Even in ancient times, Manduria had seen a tremendous amount of warfare.
Archidamus III, king of Sparta, fell beneath its walls in 338 BC,
(Manduria is also referred to as “Mandonion” in works by the Greek and Roman historian Plutarcarch.)
Manduria also revolted against Hannibal, but was taken in 209 BC .
Even Pliny the Elder, mentions Manduria in Natural History. but for a different reason, he describes a well with a strangely constant water level.
No matter how much water was taken out, the level never changed,
since ancient times, to World War II, and even today.
The town was destroyed by the Saracens in the 10th century, but inhabitants rebuilt and war would come again.
In 1836, a new corps of light infantry were developed, which would become the Bersaglieri (sharp shooters) in Italy.
The relatively poor Kingdom of Sardinia could not afford large numbers of cavalry, so a quick-moving infantry corps of marksmen were needed.
These troops were trained to high physical and marksmanship standards.
Like the French chasseurs à pied, a level of independence and initiative was encouraged, so they could operate in looser formations, in which direct command and control was not required.
Their first public appearance in a military parade in July 1836, with a rapid, high-stepping gait (180 paces/minute) .
The modern Bersaglieri, still run both on parade and even during barracks duty – on penalty of punishment if they do not.
The new corps impressed King Charles Albert, who immediately integrated them. as part of the Piedmontese regular army.
The corps grew rapidly, by 1852 there were already 10 battalions.
Throughout the 19th century, Bersaglieri filled the role of skirmishers, but acted as special shock troops ,if required.
They were originally intended as mountain troops, but the Alpini Corps were created, in 1872 and a strong rivalry arose between the two elite corps.
They also acted as skirmishers and use their sharp-shooting skills, to weaken the flanks of the enemy during a battle and employed similar rifle companies and light infantry to act as scouts, and screen for the main army.
The Bersaglieri, elite corps of riflemen performed these same functions.
They were trained to be bold, even a bit reckless, disregarding personal danger, and usually, doing their duty with just a little extra dashing flair.
WWI Bersaglieri
There were two types of Bersaglieri, the first was a regiment which rode into battle on motorcycles, much like truly motorized cavalry. An armored division was the second.
The infantry and machine gun units had better fire power, than standard Italian pieces, not only because of their stricter weapons training, but also for carrying a better weapon, than the line units.
The connection between the Bersaglieri and modern warfare solidified, when Italy formed armored divisions, in early 1939.
Italy’s Bersaglieri regiments, expanded , during WWII, but the Army resisted temptations to water down their quality, and their recruits had to be of above-average size and stamina.
They endured intense physical training, just as their great-grandfathers had, and had to qualify as marksmen.
Bersaglieri carried a carbine version of the Italian Army’s standard 6.5mm 1891 model, a good marksman’s rifle, but lacking the power of other nation’s weapons.
Other equipment was standard, except for the machine guns.
Bersaglieri had the 8mm Breda M1937, a modern weapon, gas-operated, air-cooled heavy machine gun, with a larger cartridge than its rivals.
Unlike other infantry machine guns, the Breda lacked a camming mechanism, for initial extraction of the cartridge case after firing, and this meant that each cartridge had to be oiled via an oiling mechanism., before being fed into the chamber.
This attracted dust and debris, particularly in desert environments, and was hampered by being clip- instead of belt-fed.
The Breda left no brass lying around, as the spent cartridges were re-inserted in the clip, as they were fired.
In 1943, some Bersaglieri were stationed at a local school in Manduria , Italy, though regular soldiers stayed in tents near Am’ o park, where there was an ancient aqueduct.
During an awful storm, they were flooded, and the men were displaced.
But there were some officers, who were able to stay in the school, because of their rank.
The other soldiers were then stationed, elsewhere.
Aurelio Mastrovito’s aunt owned a shop nearby , and on Sunday’s, she would take care of the men and make them great meals, even if her shop was closed.
The conditions were so poor previously, for the men; it seemed they had forgotten what it was like to eat properly.
Despite the flooding, a few days later about 300 were called to immediately, to Brindisi, to start a mission.
Aurelio Mastrovito wasn’t sure where they were going, only that they got there almost immediately, and were shot by an enemy submarine, which totally destroyed their ship and almost everyone died.
Decades later, one of the Bersaglieri survivors visited Manduria , and with the help of Mr Mastrovito, orientined himself with the changed landscape, since the war.
When Mr. Mastrovito was asked, how he knew about the sub, he replied, “because we are still mourning them. “
These men came from various parts of Italy and were treated as husbands or children, by the people of Manduria and were deeply cared for, so when the fate of the soldier’s was learned, it was an immense and terrible loss for the townspeople.
The survivor’s eyes streamed with tears , he went on with his visit. and remained in touch.
The arrival of the Allies, came sometime after, Aurelio Mastrovito, was about 9 yrs old.
The townspeople were extremely scared, many families especially, women and young ladies, hid themselves in various places.
Vividly, he recalls hearing sudden screams and then oddly enough, singing.
He was wondering what happened, suddenly he saw massive trucks and tanks full of people, coming straight from the Arch in Piazza Sant’ Angelo and thought they were going to destroy it, because of their size, but they managed to pass through.
They were speaking their own language, of course, and began throwing out packages.
Terrified, some people thought they might be full of explosive substances.
To their surprise, they were full of cigarettes, candies and other things to be prized, at such a time.
Only few families could afford these kinds of goods, but the majority could not and often he heard, of how members of poor families would succumb and die.
One remarked, the town was like Africa without Arabs, because of the great poverty of the city.
Mr. Mastrovito noted, with or without the American’s it was even worse than that, for example, if someone grew crops on land in San Pietro, he had to walk there on foot, early in the morning and return late at night.
There was barely a chance of eating and food ran out easily.
Then one day, Mr. Mastrovito, while walking on the road near the monastery, on the way to school, one of his relatives, noticed some policemen men going to her house.
She started to cry and scream, and the policemen handed her the letter, notifying her husband was killed.
He was only 20 yrs old and had two children, which was very heartbreaking.
The relatives held onto Mr. Mastrovito tightly , including the small children.
There was another family, in the road and the wife noticed a couple of policemen going to their house, and started to cry and scream.
Reeling with emotional turmoil, it all felt so horrible, and he knew and saw, if the father passed away , it would lessen the economic chances for the individual family.
As time went on, the Allies took over the Manduria airport, an airfield east of Taranto.
It was built in the 1930s .
During the early World War II years, it was used mainly as a patrol base, and did not take part in the Italian invasion of Albania and Greece.
It featured an irregular shaped flying field , 15 barracks, 3 workshops, and a medium sized hangar.
Just before the base was captured by the Allies, in 1943, the Regia Aeronautica had 39 aircraft (fighters, medium bombers and transports), at the base.
Because the Allies had never bombed it, the airfield only needed an upgrade, to accommodate bombers and became the home of famous 450th Bomb Group, which was nicknamed, the “Cottontails”, because of its white rudders.
As a part of the 15th Army Air Force, they flew missions out of Manduria, Italy (in the heel of the boot) and struck strategic targets, which were out of the reach of the 8th Army Air Force bases, in England.
Standing Left to Right:
Gerald M. French – PilotF/O James CummingCharles Flechner – Nose GunnerStan Johnson ,James Wood
Kneeling Left to Right: Elwyn Roberts,Howard Verduin ,John Ward ,DillardCenters ,Wernet Photograph courtesy of Richard Cummings, 720th Squadron
The group lost 1,505 airmen, in a year and a half—the equivalent of losing their effective flying strength, three times over.
Mr. Mastrovito lived nearby, in zone where he was able to see the various planes that came and went, always taking off in late afternoon.
They arrived early in the morning and would unite, with others from San Pancrazio, Tarranto, etc for bombing missions.
Planes came back in varying degrees of destruction, on one particular day he was shocked to see the pilot in one, dead. He was massacred and blood was even on the external part of the plane.
Still a child, this image was very chilling even today.
One of the crew was able to save the plane, with only one hand, but other planes were not as lucky and he saw them explode in mid-air, with whole crews on board and very close.
Still the war continued, and the young Mastrovito spots an American pilot from Texas; he is 19 yr old Maj, Gerald French the youngest pilot flight commander of the A-4 engine bomber plane as well as, the youngest B-24 pilot in WWII.
The young pilot was stationed in 450th Bomb Group after the armistice, to bomb European countries, taking off from the base of Manduria airport, on the way to Oria.
French was sent on a sortie,and stood out, because of a pet monkey he brought a long, in the cockpit.
French loved animals and, in particular, a monkey, which he had found stationed in Brazil, which he decided to take with him also to Italy.
To Mostovito it was finally a lighthearted sight, a little crazy, and funny moment to bring in the slightest relief during the chaos of war.
It was an extraordinary thing, for the children to see and made them laugh, as they waved at the pilot, who returned the gesture with a military salute.
It was a sweet moment, in a long and hard war, but eventually Mr. Mastrovito, would no longer see him, and wasn’t sure, if the pilot was stationed elsewhere or returned home.
After more than half a century, in the two friends were able to meet again in Manduria, Italy.
However, in 1996, a lot of the American WWII pilots returned to Manduria , at the opening of a new museum of the period.
Mr. Mastrovito was told Maj French’s group would be there.
Just before the pilot arrived, and told the commander, he wanted to give the pilot a surprise.
Mr. Mastrovito visited all the shops of Manduria and found a monkey, most like the one Maj French had.
It was hard, but he persisted. Finally, he found one and bought it and took it home.
He made clothes for the monkey, reminiscent of the ones Maj French, would wear and placed an Italian flag on one side and an American flag on the other, to symbolize the union of the two friends. 
The monkey was now ready to present and Mr. Mastrovito ‘s daughter, Laura even came from Florence to see the event.
When Maj French saw the monkey, it was an incredible event. He hugged and thanked the family, all of which who felt so emotional.
Teaching us , though many armies and many wars , have come and gone,but a greater strength is found in the hearts of it’s survivors, which endures well after war; because it’s the heart that never forgets.
below :
An excerpt of article by Jennifer Vose.as Printed from the “Daily Sentinel” on July 29, 2004. It is the daily newspaper of the City of Nacogodches, Texas.
The Oldest Town in Texas
After serving in three wars – World War II, Vietnam and Korea – French knows the price of freedom. But although he’s been presented the V for Valor for heroism, he insists that he’s no hero.
“To me, the heroes are still over there. They didn’t come home,” French said. “And another category of heroes includes those who are over there, right now, fighting for our freedom – while I’m sitting here enjoying it.”
Even when French was no longer on the front lines, he continued to fight for the rights of those he served with by remaining politically active, he said.
He corresponded with legislators regarding bills affecting veterans, and fought for the rights, he and his colleagues were promised when they enlisted, he said.
“I’m a military man, and freedom isn’t free,” he said. “We have to continuously fight for it.”
He said he didn’t believe patriotism was lacking in today’s youth – just that it has not been cultivated. There has been a war in basically every generation, he said, and those wars (or simply military training and service to the country in times of peace) have strengthened men.
“It teaches a man courtesy, responsibility and discipline,” he said.
“It teaches you a lot,” French said.
French smiled when he says it was “luck and prayer” that kept him from receiving the Purple Heart. He’s still quite proud to have never been wounded in service. French joined the Army Air Corps in June 1941. A patriotic man, he said that at the time, the opportunity to fly airplanes was as much an attraction, as service to the country.
“I was living in Denver and getting ready to go to business college when I saw the B-17s flying over,” French said. “I knew that was what I wanted to do.”
In 1941, at the age of 16, French lied about his age in order to join the Army Air Corps.
He proved to be a fast study in the aircraft that intrigued him. At the age of 18, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant and pilot, and a year later he became a flight commander.
He was recognized in the Air Force Times as the youngest commander of World War II, and became the first of the 450th Bombardment Group to complete 50 missions. He was the only member of the 720th Squadron to complete all of his missions with all 10 men.
On memorable incident during World War II earned French a belated Distinguished Flying Cross, awarded in April 1952. On Jan. 24, 1944, French and his crew were involved in a mid-air collision with a German aircraft.
The collision knocked the right rear stabilizer off French’s plane. A wing separated from the German plane, causing it to crash. French landed his plane safely.
French said he was written up for a Silver Star following the event, but turned it down when he learned that his co-pilot could not be similarly recognized.
He said he could not have come through the situation without assistance, and could not accept an individual award.
His tour of duty took him to Europe during World War II, and he finished his 50th mission on D-Day and returned to the United States.
French’s military career spanned 23 years, and during that time he served the country in two more wars – in Korea and Vietnam. In the Army Air Corps and later in the Air Force, French saw change in the world and in the military.
“I saw much more blood in Korea than I did during World War II,” French said.
After one flight, he said, he landed to discover that his plane had taken 47 hits from enemy fire.
In Vietnam, French said he flew planes carrying fresh troops and transported “the wounded and (those in) caskets” back to the United States.
Retirement from the Air Force didn’t dull French’s love of flying. He spent the next 34 years working in commercial aviation.
“I was a pilot, and I loved to fly,” French said.
After eight decades and three wars, French retained his sense of humor and his love for aircraft.
“They say old pilots never die,” he joked. “They just buzz off.”
Caro papa’ Aurelio,hai restituito la storia alla nostra Manduria,e grazie a te questi tuoi ricordi che hai ormai tramandato nei cuori dei tuoi figli e di tanta gente,saranno ormai indelebili..Fiera di essere tua figlia..Con affetto
Stefania Mastrovito